The Advanced Technology
Solar Telescope
Status Summary
Steve Keil
http://atst.nso.edu
skeil@nso.edu
505 434-7039
The ATST Project is funded by the National Science Foundation through the National Solar
Observatory which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy
(AURA), Inc.
ATST US Collaboration
•
PI
– National Solar Observatory
•
•
Stephen Keil, Thomas Rimmele, Christoph Keller, NSO Staff
Co-PIs
–
HAO
•
–
University of Hawaii
•
–
Jeff Kuhn; Haosheng Lin, Roy Coulter
University of Chicago
•
–
Michael Knölker, Steve Tomczyk, Dave Elmore, Phil Judge, Tim
Brown
Bob Rosner, Fausto Cattaneo
New Jersey Institute of Technology
•
Phil Goode; Carsten Denker, Haimin Wang
Science Working Group
Ayres, T.
U of Colorado
Palle, Pere
IAC, Spain
Berger, T.
Lockheed Martin
Rimmele, Thomas (Chair)
NSO
Cattaneo, F.
U. of Chicago
Sigwarth, Michael
KIS, Germany
Cauzzi, Gianna
Arcetri, Italy
Smaldone, L.
U. Naples, Italy
Collados-Vera, M.
IAC, Spain
Socas-Navarro, Hector
HAO
Deforest, Craig
SWRI
Stein, Robert F.
U.of Michigan
Gary, G. Allen
NASA/MSFC
Stenflo, Jan
ETH Switzerland
Jennings, Donald E. NASA/GSFC
Tomczyk, Steve
HAO
Judge, Philip G.
HAO
Van Ballegooijen, Adriaan
CfA Harvard
Keller, Christoph U.
NSO
Wang, Haimin
BBSO/NJIT
Kuhn, Jeffrey R.
IfA, U of Hawaii
Leka, K.D.
Colorado Research
Lin, Haosheng
IfA, U of Hawaii
Lites, Bruce W.
HAO
Site Survey Working Group
•
Jacques Beckers
–
U. Chicago
•
Tim Brown
–
High Altitude Observatory (Chair)
•
Manolo Collados-Vera –
Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias
•
Carsten Denker
–
New Jersey Institute of Technology
•
Frank Hill
–
National Solar Observatory
•
Jeff Kuhn
–
U. Hawaii - Institute of Astronomy
•
Matt Penn
–
National Solar Observatory
•
Hector Socas-Navarro –
•
Dirk Soltau
–
Kiepenheuer-Institut fuer Sonnenphysik
•
Kim Streander
–
High Altitude Observatory
High Altitude Observatory
In House Eng/Management Team
•
Project Scientist, AO
–
Thomas Rimmele
•
Project Manager
–
Jim Oschmann
•
Deputy Project Manager
–
Jeremy Wagner (acting PM)
•
System Engineer
–
Rob Hubbard
•
Mechanical Engineer
–
Mark Warner
•
Optical-Mechanical Engineer –
•
Thermal Engineer
–
Nathan Dalrymple (USAF)
•
Lead Software/Controls
–
Bret Goodrich
•
Software Engineers
–
Steve Wampler / Janet Tvedt
•
Facility Engineer
–
Jeff Barr
•
Adaptive Optics Engineer
–
Kit Richards
•
AO & Site Survey Manager
–
Steve Hegwer
•
Optical Design
–
Ming Liang
•
Admin Support
–
Jennifer Purcell
•
Outreach
–
Dave Dooling
Ron Price
In-house Science and
Instrumentation Team
•
Project Scientist
–
Thomas Rimmele
•
Narrowband Imaging
–
K. S. Balasubramaniam
•
Near-IR spectrometer
–
Matt Penn
•
Polarimetry
–
Christoph Keller
•
Thermal IR
–
Han Uitenbroek
•
Site Survey
–
Frank Hill
•
Adaptive Optics
–
Maud Langlois,
Gil Moretto
•
Simulations
–
Uitenbroek,
Balasubramaniam,
Keller
The ATST
•
How is it different
–
•
Open air, built in AO & aO, built in polarization modulation, larger aperture,
coronagraphic capability
Challenges
–
Limit telescope and instrumental seeing
•
•
•
–
•
Cleaning – dust is the major enemy of coronal observations
Design driven by instrumentation
–
–
•
Thermal control
Optics quality
M1 Figure – open air vs. wind loading
Visible and IR polarimetry
Spectroscopy and narrow band imaging
Why now?
–
Technology –
•
•
•
–
aO, AO
Thin mirror active support technology
Fast camera’s
Modeling has outstripped observational capability
Goals of the ATST
• Magnetic fields control the inconstant Sun
• The key to understanding solar variability and its direct
impact on the Earth rests with understanding all aspects
of these magnetic fields
• Magnetic fields are the “dark energy” problem of solar
physics
• ATST designed specifically for magnetic remote sensing,
careful flow down from science objectives to telescope
parameters
:
Test Models of:
• Magneto-convection
• Flux emergence, transport and annihilation
• Flux tube formation and evolution
• Sunspot magnetic fields and flows
• Atmospheric heating, Solar Wind acceleration,
Irradiance variations
• Solar Activity
ATST is:
• The ultimate tool to investigate the magnetic structure of
the solar atmosphere at the smallest size scales  the
actual sources of solar variability
• Needed for spectro-polarimetry at increasingly small
scales in the solar atmosphere allowing for identification
of physical mechanisms
• Providing for a combination of spatial and time resolution
in spectro-polarimetric observations to observationally
connect solar vector magnetic fields throughout the
dynamic solar atmosphere
Comparison with other Telescopes
Areal Resolution
10000
Resolved Area (km^2)
DST
THEMIS
SST
McMP
GREGOR, NST
1000
Predicted Magnetic Fibril sizes
ATST
100
0
50
100
150
200
250
Aperture (cm)
300
350
400
450
Why an ATST
Theory and Modeling have gone beyond our ability to test observationally
a (Part V
b
c
1.1”
a. Numerical simulation of
magneto-convection
(courtesy of Fausto
Cattaneo
b. As viewed with a
diffraction limited 4-m
telescope
c. As viewed with a
diffraction limited 1-m
telescope
3 sec
exposure
Tip/tilt on
AO loop
on
off
Flare Structure
DST + AO
UBF
Hydrogen - alpha
1” tic marks
AR 0486 observed close
to east limb
10/24/03 UT 18:14 – UT
19:31
First observation of flare
structure at 0.”2 resolution
Spectral Diagnostics
Plasma
Fundamentals
Flux Tube Dynamics
Energy Transport
Active Region
Dynamics
Field Evolution
Coronal Loops
Energetic Flares, Particle
Acceleration, Shocks, Temperature
Transition Region, Coronal Loops
Lower Atmospheric Structure
Magnetic Transition Region
Coronal Magnetic Fields
Flare Location &
Energy, Coronal
Structure
0.02”
Advanced Technology Solar
Telescope
wavelength & spatial
0.2” coverage compared to other
facilities
SDO
(2007-2012+)
2”
SOLIS
(2004-2030)
20”
200”
3D Corona,
Interplanetary
Propagation
Spatial Diagnostics
Combined Observations
Energy Transport, Atmospheric Heating, Origins of Flares and CME’s
Coupled, Predictive Sun-Earth Space Weather Models
RHESSI
(2002-2005+)
Next High
Energy
Mission
ATST
(2013 - )
FASR
(2012 - )
STEREO
(2006-2008+)
(SENTINEL)
Solar Diameter ~1920”
2000”
Gamma-ray
X-ray
EUV
UV
Wavelength
Visible
Near-IR
Thermal IR
Radio
Optical Design Overview
The Off-axis Telescope
12-meter
f / 0.6
Symmetric
Gregorian
Illuminate one
side only
... Then trim
unused portions
4-meter
f/2
Off-axis
Gregorian
Off-axis advantages
• There is no obstruction
of the beam by the
secondary mirror
• There is no diffraction
from the secondary
support structure to
degrade coronal images.
• Coolant and other
services can be
delivered to the
secondary mirror without
crossing the beam.
Thermal Control – Enclosure
Hybrid, actively cooled co-rotating enclosure
ATST Timeline
2007 construction start
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
Scientific and Technical Advisory Groups
Technology
Development
ATST High-Level
Schedule
Concept & Design
Demonstrate HighOrder AO system
CoDR
Construction
Proposal
Select Site
Sub-System Fabrication
(Telescope mount, Enclosure, Optics & support systems,
Thermal control systems, Instrumentation, etc)
Mirror Procurement (Critical Path)
Site Construction
Site EIS
Integration
Vendor
PDRs
Telescope &
Instrument
Commissioning
SDR
Now
CDR
Operations
Next Steps
•
MREFC Process
– National Science Board Ranking
– Budget Process – OMB, Congress
•
System Level Review
•
Instrument PDRs
•
Vendor Feasibility Studies of design concepts
– Insure constructability
– Retire remaining high risk technical areas
•
Contracts for final design and construction of major components
Partnerships
• International support and interest
– Italy
• Letter of support received
• Science, adaptive optics subsystems, post-focus instruments
– Spain
• Letter of support received
• Science, polarization expertise
– Germany
• MOU signed
• Proposal to German Government in June
• Director of KIS – Potential of $10M independent of site
– Switzerland
• Near UV instrumentation
Partnerships
• Air Force
– AFOSR
•
•
•
•
Purchase and Polish Mirror
Recoating facility on Haleakala
Potential support for instruments at university partners
Collocation of AF staff and participation in operations
– Military Construction Fund (AFOSR, AFRL pursuing)
– Tracking (ACOS)
– Space Debris (DARPA, white paper this spring)
• NASA
– Thermal-IR instrumentation
– Visible tunable filter
Cost Estimate Broken Down by WBS
Elements - $175M total
(includes inflation & contingency)
Figure 5.2. Construction Cost Breakdown
Potential* Partner Sharing
•We have draft MOU with Germany, letters from Spain, Italy, & Switzerland
•Potential for EU consortium, Japan
Construction Proposal Cost
175
AF
Germany
Italy
Spain
Sweden
France
EU
University of Hawaii
US Cost
12
10
5
10
4
TBD
TBD
3
131
Summary
•
The 4m ATST is essential to solve many outstanding problems in
solar astronomy & astrophysics. Substantial vs. incremental
progress!
•
These problems are highly relevant to humankind!! – Sun-Climate,
Sun-Space Weather, Sun-Laboratory Plasma, Sun -Cosmic Magnetic
Fields
•
ATST with its cutting edge instrumentation will provides us with a
powerful tool solve the mysteries of solar magnetism.
•
New diagnostics tools (e.g. IR) and new technology (e.g. AO) are at
hand.
•
Complementary role of ATST and Space Missions – coordination is
essential.
Contact Information
Stephen L. Keil, NSO Director
skeil@nso.edu
1-505-434-7039
Thomas Rimmele, Project Scientist, 1-505-434-7022
Jeremy Wagner, Project Manager, 1-520-318-8249
Frank Hill, Site Survey Operations & Data, 1-520-318-8138
For More Information see:
http://atst.nso.edu